Video Tapes
by bethanyjaneisles
Summary: Gibbs gets a call informing him that a petty officer has not turned up for work in 3 days, but when the team find some of his personal belongings they realise there is a more sinister reason why he has not been present for duty. Will the team find him before it's too late? Will this case bring up feelings between 2 agents? little bit of KIBBS, i'll see how much I can squeeze in ;)


It was just them left now; Tony had rushed out after getting a call from Amber the pizza delivery girl. Usually Kate would roll her eyes or make a sarcastic comment, but not today. Nothing. He was worried, today had been a rough day for everyone, child centred cases always were, but this one seemed to effect Kate in a way that shook her, and that scared him.

It had all started 3 days ago, on that particular Tuesday everyone seemed in good spirits, Tony and Kate were joking backing and forth, Kate even roping McGee in to pick of Tony which had been entertaining to watch. They had received a call late that morning informing them that a petty officer Thomas hadn't shown up for duty in 3 days which for him, they had been told, was out of character. They had searched his house, checked and analysed his record, asked his colleagues. Nothing. Until they had gone through his computer files and found recordings of the petty officer and his, for lack of a better word, plans.

They had watched the videos all together on the plasma, whilst Kate had analysed and profiled him she had come back with: unstable, lonely, meticulous planner with unpredictable psychotic traits. This was never going to be an open and shut case… seeing the content of the videos was the most disturbing part, it was like the petty officers virtual diary of sorts and no detail was spared.

So far they had learnt that Thomas had a close friend when he was serving overseas, a petty officer McAdams, they had been roommates and had remained close until their service had ended, but as PO Thomas had stated, several times, in his video they had lost contact when something had been released that had resulted in Thomas being passed over for a promotion. Something only a close friend would know, the same friend that had left the Navy and skipped town.

Taking this as a lead they split up, Kate and him finding more on a James McAdams and Dinozzo and McGee analysing the videos. They had worked through the night, nothing substantial had come from the tapes or from the search from the former PO that had literally disappeared of the face of the earth, but they kept looking.

The only good side to working cases like this was that he got to know Kate better, see her beautiful mind at work her knowledge and ability to read people was amazing. He often wondered, when she was looking at him smiling in that way and he was lost in her gaze, what she could read in him and if so what did he say?

In the late hours of Thursday night Kate and he finally got a hit and as they ran through the darkened corridor into the office where McGee and Dinozzo were sat, eyes wide, they stopped suddenly a look of confusion falling onto Kate's soft features. He looked at Tony, asking him a million questions with just his cool blue stare "err… boss" Tony stuttered still looking in shock "what is it" Kate replied "tony!" she pressed further, catching everyone's attention with the harshness of the tone which seemed to drag everyone from the confused haze they were sitting in. "just watch" Tony had said looking deep into the screen in front of them, almost looking for something else, something to explain what they were about to see, he spoke so softly and tentatively almost like if they spoke of whatever it was out loud, something might explode.

A pale looking McGee had pressed play on the particular part of the video in question and they all stood transfixed on the screen, eyes wide as PO Thomas spat out those words "I'm going to find that bastard McAdams wherever he is and kill him and whoever else gets in my way" and as the clip ended the sound of a gun loading filled the air of the empty bullpen as the soft click of the video ending brought the agents back to life. The petty officer spoke with such certainty, such hatred. At some point we had all turned to look at Kate, faces questioning silently screaming for her opinion of whether this guy was serious, all of us knowing the answer but praying we were wrong but a short, solid nod from the dark haired agent was all that we needed to put us into action.


End file.
